Dusty Summers Has a Boner for Kevin Costner

This week’s edition of People Who Work Here brings us Dusty Summers, a Philadelphia native who has been working with Jeff Kleinsmith in the art department at Sub Pop for the past three years. Dusty is the guy who has brought you the fabulous artwork on Sub Pop titles such as Band of Horses ‘Everything All the Time’, The Album Leaf ‘Into the Blue Again’, Kinski ‘Alpine Static’, and more recently, Dntel ‘Dumb Luck’, and Pissed Jeans ‘Hope For Men’. He also has a design company with his buddy back in Philly called The Heads of State that does posters and album art as well and you should maybe hire them because the Duster is having a baby soon with his loverly wife Lauren. Babies having babies…. Let’s meet Dusty!

L: When did you know you were going to do art for a living?
D: Not until the middle of college. I went to art school not knowing what I wanted to major in but after taking a few classes I found that you get a lot less dirty in design class than you do in painting or sculpture. It’s a little disconcerting coughing up black spit after a life drawing class.
L: Who do you think is better, you or Jeff?
D: You’re trying to get me fired huh? Jeff’s got 12 years on me—he’s got the leg up. Who do you think is better? [I think you are both great. Really. –ed.]
L: What is Jeff’s most annoying habit?
D: Jeff gets in about an hour earlier than I do, so strolling in at 9:30 and hearing him blast UFO, Monster Magnet, Iron Maiden, Blue Oyster Cult (the list goes on) at a loud volume can be a tad tedious. His desk is far tidier than mine and that’s annoying. He’s got a no whistling rule, too, and that’s hard to control—sometimes you just want to whistle. [Woah, buddy—I said HABIT, singular. Do you even like this job? ed]
L: Are you shitting your pants that you are having a baby? Do you want a girl or a boy? (Please none of that ‘I don’t care as long as it’s healthy crap’, either.)
D: Holy fuck shit yes. I’m psyched but I’m not sure I’m ready for a fleet of strollers. Or the vomit. Or the Huggies. We got a sonogram the other day and saw that thing jumping around in there like it was at a jamboree. We didn’t see a beard on it (yet) but I’m pretty sure its gonna be a boy. We both want a boy. Unless it turns out to be a girl. Then we want one of those. It’s coming in the middle of football season, cant wait to gear him up in a mini Donovan McNabb jersey, I’m not sure you can do that with girl babies. [Who is Donovan McNabb? -ed]
L: Please tell me why ‘Dances With Wolves’ is your favorite film. You’ve really not seen another movie that is better than that?
D: Well, first off I think that the readers should know that on your Netflix you have rated ‘Dances With Wolves’ as a 1 star movie and ‘Twins’ [starring the hilarious duo of Arnold Shwarzenegger and Danny DeVito! –ed] as a 5 star movie and this might be an early sign of dementia. Anyway, it’s a classic, a modern epic. I first saw it when I was 10 or so. A 4 hour movie – trapped in a theater – totally sucked, but I picked it up again a few years ago. Man, 1 star really? They used some of Neil Young’s buffalo as extras, does that get you an extra star? [Okay, I did not know that Neil Young had any buffalo, but I don’t think having ‘famous’ buffalo a five star movie makes. Plus, I was never a very svelte kid and my first experiences with the film were asshole dudes in junior high calling all the fat girls ‘tatonka’. Maybe I have a mental block. –ed.] I mean you know how I feel about Netflix rating system, you have to at least give it two stars.
L: Describe a typical weekend for Dusty Summers.
D: Well on Friday nights we usually plan to go out and then don’t, greatly disappointing whomever we had planned to go out with. Instead we watch ‘Intervention’ on A&E and then a movie, or sometimes we play Boggle. Then on Saturday…actually, we repeat Fridays on Saturday and Sunday as well. [Intervention is the jam! I like the shopaholics and the kids that shoot meth the best. –ed.]
L: What is your favorite band of all time? Favorite record of this year? Favorite band on Sub Pop?
D: Favorite band of all time: The Band. Record this year is either the Panda Bear album or the Lil Wayne’s Da Drought 3 that he’s been leaking for the last couple of months. Favorite on Sub Pop ever? Hazel, I think. [Oh man, Mark is going to be pissed! –ed.] On the roster right now? I really love Kelley Stoltz.
L: Do you use your beard as a means to keep people from getting too close to you?
D: How close are you trying to get? [Zing! –ed.]
L: Please respond to this statement: Dusty is the oldest young man I know.
D: You feel like this even after you found out I play boggle on Friday nights?! I dunno, I’m pretty comfortable with it. I’d take my wife, our couch, and a movie over band and bar any day of the week. [Until I edited this, that last sentence read ‘I’d take my wife on our couch any day.’ I blushed a little at first. –ed.]
L: What did you want to be when you were a kid?
D: I wanted to be a pilot. I had this world book dictionary set that included a big section on every major US city with big maps and all that. I used to scout out the airports, memorize all their names. My grandmother came to town one time and asked me where I wanted to go: Movies? Amusement park? Toy store? I picked the airport. That must have sucked for her. I got a few flying lessons for my birthday once, scared the shit out of me. Actually, one of the coolest things to do in Seattle if you have friends in town is go up to the Boeing Factory tour up in Mukilteo or something-have you ever been? [Not really my jam, but I’m glad you like it. May I suggest the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Grandpa? Sounds right up your alley…. –ed.]
L: Philly or Seattle? Why?
D: Philly: Walkable. Urban. Dirty. [I’ll say! -ed.] Tony Luke’s. Wawa. Tastycake. Schooly D. Hot pretzels. muggers. Da Iggles. Jersey Shore. Yuengling. Beanie Segil. Ben Franklin look-a-likes & ye olde flute players. Mike Schmidt. Broad Street Bullies. Hall & Oates. Better art museum. Racial diversity. Rocky balboa. Snow. No utilikilts. Septa. Hoagies. Cheese fries. Amish dudes. Real pizza. The Roots. Wudder. Yo. Jaywalking. Doctor J. The Constitution. [I can’t really argue with that list—especially the cheese fries and Rocky Balboa part. Racial diversity and The Constitution are overrated, though. –ed.]
L: Please give me one really good piece of advice for life.
D: Don’t take advice for life from old young men.